Disclaimer: I still own nothing.
Chapter 3
Much to Molly's disgust, I puffed happily on a cigarette as she pulled me through the crowd of festivities. I was so relieved to have my cancer stick that I hadn't even noticed that she had stopped and I walked right into her. "Elliot! Pay attention you stupid smoker!" I glared at her darkly.
"I was enjoying myself, so you'd better have a good reason for dragging me out here." With another long stress relieving drag I dropped the butt on the ground and stepped on it. My head was feeling a lot better which made it easier not to snap at her." She spun franticly and pointed to Payton standing next to a tent with a polished wooden counter. I strode over to Payton and sighed, "What did you do?" I must have had a really angry expression on my face because she jumped and couldn't meet my eyes.
"W-what? I didn't… I didn't do anything Elliot." That sounded very suspicious. I turned back to Molly and raised my brow. Something was going on here and I wasn't sure I was going to like it. Molly was fidgeting and studiously avoiding my gaze as well. My eye twitched.
"What. Did. You. Do?" The sound of someone clearing their throat made me jump.
"I'm not sure exactly what's going on here sir, but these girls have done nothing wrong. I must say your behavior is what's wrong here." I turned to see an old man standing behind the counter. He looked incredibly familiar. Where had I- "Now if you are the most experienced trainer traveling with them, then I must see your trainer's license and receive your consent." I automatically reached into my pocket digging for my wallet. I stopped as soon as the worn leather touched my fingertips.
"Consent for what?" I turned back to Molly and Payton frowning darkly.
"For permission to raise an egg of course." My eye twitched again. "Each year at this festival the daycare brings the unwanted eggs to give to trainers with only one requirement. The trainer must have had their license for 3 months, or have an adult present to sign for them." Surely this was a joke. I looked back at the pleading eyes and decided that it wasn't. A thoughtful look crossed my face, this could be a good learning experience for them both. I hadn't raised an egg before, but how hard could it be? I pulled out my wallet and passed the old man my license. He checked it and nodded. "Do you have any experience with eggs?"
"No, I've only held one for a friend for a couple of hours." And I hadn't moved more than 2 feet.
"Well, it isn't too complicated. Make sure it stays warm, but not too warm. Body temperature should be ok. Don't drop it and try to prevent shaking it about." I nodded, so no hokey pokey for the eggs. "Once it's ready to hatch you'll know it. Step up to the counter and I'll see if I can find the right pokémon egg for you." Molly and Payton practically appeared next to me and I sighed. The old man disappeared into the tent behind the counter while we waited in silence. A quick glance at the girls revealed them to be excited beyond anything I had ever seen. Was this really such a big deal?
"I wonder what I'll get. I hope it's cooler than yours, Elliot." Molly grinned up at me wickedly and I shrugged. She scowled. "Don't be mad when my egg is cooler." I didn't show any sign of responding and she started again. "Don't get ma-" The Daycare man appeared from the back and walked up to the counter.
"You were quite simple to choose an egg for." He passed a cream colored egg into my arms and smiled. It was about the size of a football and weighed about ten pounds. I probably wasn't going to enjoy carrying this around for a long time. The old man examined Molly and Payton before disappearing again murmuring under his breath.
"It's a lot bigger than I expected." Payton was looking up at my egg carefully. "Is it really okay for me to carry an egg around? What if I drop it?"
"Don't worry you won't drop it and I'm sure the pokémon center can heal them just like our pokémon in their pokeballs." Molly was smiling brightly while she watched for the daycare man's return. The daycare man telling us not to drop them made me think otherwise.
"Just try not to drop it." I frowned was he really going to take forever? He reappeared just as I thought that and he passed a pink egg to Payton.
"This egg is a little different. You don't need to worry about it being too cold, but rather too warm. Body heat is still fine, but try not to smother it." Payton nodded and held the egg away from her chest with a look of uncertainty in her eyes. "Now you" ,he leaned closer to Molly and narrowed his eyes. "I think…" He turned and disappeared once again.
"Why do I have to go last? It's not fair." Molly stamped her foot, I was going to break that foot if she didn't stop that. I knelt down and carefully showed the egg to Dakheel. I watched him for any signs of mischief as he sniffed the egg. He sat and looked at it for a long moment and then looked at me with a look that clearly said, 'and what am I supposed to do with this?' I shook my head and stood back up. I scratched behind his horns with my free hand while the daycare man gave Molly a reddish brown egg. They were all about the same size, but the different colors were interesting. Now, with eggs in hand I had one more question.
"Hey old man, about how long does it take an egg to hatch?" He looked at me with a bright grin.
"Ah, but that is the fun of caring for an egg. The excitement of waiting. I will tell you that they all won't hatch at the same time. I'm not sure exactly which will hatch first or last. Enjoy them, they will be more devoted to you than you can imagine." He waved us off and we made our way through the streets towards the pokémon center. I held the egg up to my ear and frowned. I couldn't hear anything, nor did it feel like it was moving. Only time will tell. With eggs in hand, we made our way through the crowds to the pokémon center across the city.
The pokémon center was packed. I knew before we had even gotten to the counter that there were no rooms available. The Nurse informed us that we were welcome to sleep in the lobby like the thirty or so other people, we just had to be out of the center area in case an injured pokémon needed help. A trainer didn't need to trip over sleeping people when their pokémon was hurt. I glanced around there weren't many spots to choose from, so I picked a spot against the wall near the bathrooms. I easily spread out my sleeping bag one handed and sat on it with my egg in my lap. Molly and Payton struggled with theirs and resorted to kicking them open to keep firm holds on their precious cargo. "Have you two eaten? There are some vending machines in the corner if you haven't." Before I had finished my sentence Molly and Payton were at the machines going over the selection. I looked at the egg in my lap for a long moment. Was I going to regret this?
When the girls returned they called out their pokémon and passed snacks to them. I frowned the pokémon were eating like they were starving. I scowled. "So, what did you two eat while you were out and about?"
"We had these great fried… uh what were they? I don't know, but it was fried and on a stick. I think I had about four of those." My scowl deepened and Molly looked at me for a long moment. "Is something wrong?"
"What did you feed your pokémon who I asked you to feed first?" The girls looked at each other suddenly very guilty. "We just kinda… forgot."
"I'm sorry." Payton seemed to fold in upon herself as she passed the rest of her snacks to her two pokémon. Olivia seemed to be glaring daggers at Payton and then at me as if it was my fault.
"You forgot. What if I forgot to feed you?" I was very annoyed. Why was it difficult to put people dependant on you first? I shook my head. They both looked very guilty and that was a good sign. Neither Molly nor Payton would forget again. My last worry was the cat pokémon that was ready to claw me for Payton's mistake. I sighed and got up to walk over to the counter leaving the egg on my sleeping bag.
"Nurse Jackie, do you have any kind of pokémon food behind the counter?" She nodded and reached behind the counter placing a jar in front of me. "I need three more." She frowned and got them for me.
"Perhaps you should have thought about feeding them while you ate. Someone your age should know that already." I could feel her glaring daggers into my back as I passed the food down to the miserably silent girls. I settled the egg back into my lap and sat in the uncomfortable atmosphere. This was certainly odd. I was supposed to be the miserable one.
"Did you go by the gym to leave a request?"
"A what?" That answered my question.
"When a trainer wants to challenge the gym leader they leave a request with the secretary. That way the gym leader knows that he or she should be at the gym. Otherwise you are just hoping there's time for you in the gym leader's schedule." I stood again with egg in hand I made my way to the door.
"You aren't mad at me are you?" Molly had never sounded more uncertain.
"I'm not the one you need to worry about." I strode out into the dark night. I circled around the side of the pokémon center and fished into my pocket for my cigarettes and lighter. I popped one into my mouth and tried my lighter. A gust of wind blew out my flame before I could quite get it to catch. I scowled around my cigarette and tried again turning my back to the wind. The wind blew again, but I had already gotten my cigarette to light so I didn't really care too much. I leaned against the wall comfortably and stared at the sky. Smack! My cigarette fell from my lips and my hand flew to my stinging cheek. A young blonde woman was glaring at me as she ground her foot onto my fallen cigarette. I opened and closed my mouth a few times. "Hey! What was that for?"
"It's disgusting smokers like you that are ruining the world for pokémon." My mouth opened and closed a few more times. "I suggest you drop this nasty habit of yours. Next time I won't be so kind." I sputtered angrily.
"Kind! You call a slap in the face kind? You must be some kind of crazy as-"
"I'll be taking this as well." She plucked my lighter from my fisted hand easily. "You really should rethink picking up harmful habits." She turned and strode away as quickly as she came. What a bitch! I still had my smokes sure… but my lighter was kind of important! Who is she to tell me what I can and cannot do? She isn't my mother, and I barely listen to her as it is. I rubbed my temples darkly. I needed to calm down there had to be a solution. I tapped the pack against my forehead and it hit me. I looked at the cigarettes and grinned. I strode back around the building and whistled into the lobby. It only took a moment for Dakheel to appear beside me.
"I know you don't want to do this, but could you light this for me?" I leaned down holding my cigarette towards him carefully. He examined it carefully before puffing out smoke and then a small fireball. I looked at the glowing ember on the end and popped the cigarette in my mouth. "Thank you Dakheel." I sat on the ground next to him and scratched him affectionately. Before long my cigarette was out and I was just sitting with him in a companionable silence. How long had it been since I had a moment to just sit? I started to check my watch, but it was too dark to see its face. I shook my head and used the wall to help me stand. Dakheel shook out his fur and followed me inside.
Nearly everyone was asleep and the large digital clock behind the counter said 1:30. I raised my brows, had I really been outside that long? I slipped into my sleeping bag and placed the egg against my stomach. I don't move much in my sleep so it should be ok. Dakheel made himself comfortable behind me. I closed my eyes and was asleep almost instantly.
I woke up later than usual because I had been up so late. The morning chatter of the other trainers pulled me from a pleasant dream involving a nicotine fairy. I rubbed my head and looked around. Dakheel was still sleeping, which was normal. The girls were sitting at a nearby table having breakfast with their pokémon eating nearby. I started to get up, but a lump in my sleeping bag stopped me. "Wha- oh." The egg. I had forgotten about it. I pulled it out and looked it over. It looked okay, it was safe to assume that I didn't roll on it. I leaned the egg against Dakheel carefully and watched to see if he would wake up. When he didn't stir I turned and rolled up my sleeping bag. Once it was safely stowed away I picked up the egg and recalled Dakheel. It was best to leave him alone when I was in public.
The breakfast bar was picked over and I grabbed two large plates and walked to the packs. I released Analise, Lennox, and Quinn. I passed out food for each of them and ate a little myself. I watched them eat and knew that Dakheel would not be pleased that I left him out of breakfast, but I would bring something for him when we left and it was safe to wake him. Analise finished first and ambled over to examine the egg in my lap. "This is going to be our newest team member." She looked up at me and then circled trying to see the egg more closely. I held it out and she examined it closely. From the corner of my eye a blue blur made me pull the egg closer to my chest and Lennox streaked by landing on the floor nearby. He spun around and crouched, his tail whipping side to side as he stared at the egg.
"New team member yes, new play toy… no." This didn't seem to faze the Luxio in the least. Quinn dove in behind the cat and smacked Lennox with his wings sharply. Lennox spun and pounced nearly managing to land a hit on the bird pokémon. I held out Lennox's pokeball and recalled him. I didn't need a pokémon center disaster on my plate.
"Elliot, what are the chances of the gym leader being in?" I turned to see Molly with a piplup in one arm and an egg in the other.
"Well, considering you didn't say you were here to the secretary, pretty slim. However, it doesn't hurt to check." I turned to Payton who was gathering her things and getting ready to leave. "How long until you two are ready?" They both shrugged.
"I dunno, maybe fifteen minutes?" Payton said as she stuffed her things into her backpack.
"Yeah, I guess fifteen minutes is good." Molly hesitated and looked down at Czar. "That should be enough time to give a pep talk or something."
"I'll be outside. Just come out when you're ready." I cleaned up my pokémon's breakfast and grabbed an extra muffin for a certain houndoom. Once outside I called out Dakheel and looked at him. He was awake and I was very surprised. "Well then, would you like more than a muffin? We're still close to the breakfast bar." He snorted and accepted his breakfast. I made a mental note to give him a bigger lunch. I grabbed my cigarettes and froze, my lighter. That woman from last night stole it. Which means I can't have cigarettes, unless Dakheel is willing to light them for me. I was sure he would not want to after I put him in his pokeball. It didn't hurt to ask. I leaned down once again and asked him to light another cigarette. He looked at me for a long moment before lighting the stick before him. "Thank you again, Dakheel." I puffed happily until I heard the door swoosh open. I turned to see Molly and Payton looking ready to go. "Alright then, let's get a move on."
"Elliot, is challenging a gym leader difficult?" I thought about it for a long moment.
"That depends. Is your pokémon ready for it? Do you have a type advantage? What is your strategy? Gym leaders know what they are doing and it's their job to teach young trainers by beating them to a pulp." I was aware the last bit was unnecessary, but I felt like this day was starting off too positive and something was about to go horribly wrong.
The trek through the dusty Oreburgh City had me remembering my childhood. This place never changed in all the years I've visited it. The only thing that ever changed was the young faces that were crushed by Roark. Molly's chances of winning were really good. She had battled a few times against trainers on the road, so she is used to giving commands. The only difference is the atmosphere. The large grey gym loomed above us. Its slate walls seemed more foreboding than the last time I entered. I strode forward and opened the solid wood door waving the girls inside.
"Are you sure?" A familiar red head was leaning against the secretary's desk lightly. "I guess I'll just have to head to the mine then." He turned and his face went from a frown to a bright and sunny smile as soon as he saw us enter. "Ah Elliot and little Molly! I was wondering when I would see you in here." He adjusted his hard hat with a smile. I caught a glimpse of Molly's face and it was as red as a tomato. I wasn't sure I was cruel enough to tell her that it wasn't meant to be. I would leave that subject for another time.
"You knew we were coming?" Molly was still blushing like mad, but she was at least able to form sentences.
"Well, I saw Elliot yesterday and he mentioned you were working on your own pokémon league challenge." Roark turned back to the secretary and murmured something to her before turning back to us.
"I didn't mention that." I raised a brow.
"Ah, but why else would a young person like herself be in Oreburgh?" He had a point. I shrugged lightly and nodded.
"Touché."
"So, is the gym leader in? I would really like to challenge him." Molly was radiating nervousness. Roark looked straight at me with a raised brow.
"It never came up." I muttered.
"I see! Well then, shall we head on into the arena?" He lead the way through a short hallway and motioned towards a door with spectators carved into a wooden board above it. He looked at me and said, "Spectators." Payton nodded and stepped through the door. I started to go but Molly grabbed my sleeve in a white knuckled grip.
"Would it be alright if I watched from the arena floor?" I asked him as I tried to free my sleeve from Molly's death grip.
"It won't be a problem, but you cannot help her. No items and no advice, okay? If you can't do that, you wait outside." I nodded. That was fair. "Alright then, are you ready Molly?" She barely nodded and pulled me along as she followed him stiffly into the open room of the arena. He pointed at a raised platform a few yards away. "You wait there, and your battle will commence shortly." He walked into a door that opened under the spectator's booth and closed the door behind him.
"So, the gym leader is in that room." I nodded he certainly was. "Anything I should know about him? Anything at all?"
"You'll be fine, it's just another trainer battle." The door opened and Roark emerged jogging down the twenty yards to the other side of the arena. He climbed up on the platform and adjusted his gloves. "Why is he-"
"As the challenged I, Roark the Oreburgh Gym Leader, choose the battle style. Fair enough?" Molly nodded stiffly. I frowned, she'd better not pass out. "We'll start this off easy, a one versus one match. Match ends when a pokémon is unable to battle. Are you prepared challenger Molly?"
"Y-yes. I'm ready. I think." Who was up on that podium? Molly always charged in head first. Oh well, she can always try again if she loses.
"Let's go Geodude." Roark called out his pokémon and I frowned. He can tell she's nervous and is testing her.
"Okay, Czar we can do this." Molly was still shaking as her piplup jumped from the platform to the arena. "Elliot, can you hold this for me?" She turned quickly and held out her egg and I took it with as little contact as possible. I didn't want to give Roark any reason to think I was helping. "Okay Czar, use bubble." Her voice was shaking and her hands gripped the rail in a white knuckled grip.
"Hah, child's play. Geodude dodge and use rock polish." Roark's geodude slammed its fists into the floor and hurled itself out of the way of the bubbles that Czar had blown its way. It crossed its arms over its face and seemed to concentrate.
"Czar, use pound." She was starting to gain her confidence again as her piplup sprang across the field raising a wing in preparation to strike. Roark's geodude opened its eyes and grinned, all of the rough edges on its body seemed to disappear and smooth over.
"Surely you didn't think that move would do much of anything. Geodude put some distance between you and use Rock Throw." Once again the Geodude hurled itself and this time he moved nearly twice as fast through the air. I raised my brows, how would Molly deal with this? Geodude reached down and grabbed a rock and chucked it viciously at the poor penguin. Before Czar could recover from the first rock another slammed him backwards a few feet. "Geodude, use tackle." Piplup stumbled and looked up at Molly seeming to beg for a command as the geodude slammed into him. I looked up at Molly, she was staring at Roark completely terrified. I looked over at him, he didn't look so scary to me. I frowned darkly, what was causing her to freeze like this? Another tackle sent a tired Czar flying and I looked up at Molly fiercely.
"Mo-" I stopped. I can't help her. I had to follow his rules. I was shaking in anger. Why was this any different from before?
"Geodude, tackle again." Czar was too tired to even try to defend itself. Geodude slammed into him squarely and sent him flying directly into Molly's chest throwing them both backwards off of the platform.
"Molly!" I ran around to see her slowly sitting up breathing like she had been… hit in the chest by a flying penguin. "Are you alright?" She glared daggers at me. What did I do now?
"Why didn't you help me? This is all your fault Elliot!" Wait what? "If you hadn't pushed me to go to the gym, then I wouldn't have been so…" She stood and recalled Czar cuddling his pokeball carefully. She was crying and I couldn't bring myself to care.
"My fault? Oh really. You said this is what you wanted. You never said you weren't ready. How the hell is this my fault!" A firm hand on my shoulder stopped me there.
"I am sorry, go heal your pokémon and do some training. You can come back as soon as you're ready." He turned to me a sharp look in his eye. "Elliot, I know you can be an asshole, but that was uncalled for." What was he even- "She's a child, of course she is going to be afraid and of course she will blame others for her mistakes. What's important here is that you know to be an adult and how to act like one." I scowled darkly. "Get out of my gym until you can act your age." I turned on my heel and left without another word.
Molly was surely heading for the pokémon center, so I went in the opposite direction to find a nice quiet spot to sit. A bench on a deserted road seemed almost perfect for my mood at the moment. Dakheel sat next to me silently, I had forgotten that he was even here. I put my head in my hands. Okay, I lost my temper, but Roark didn't have to freak the fuck out. I grabbed my new pack of cigarettes and pulled one out for Dakheel to light. He lit it without complaint and I puffed furiously. Sure, she was mad, but did she have to leave me with her egg? It was bad enough carrying around one football. I didn't need two. I wasn't sure how long I sat there on that bench, but before long Payton appeared in front of me.
"Uhm, Molly said that she doesn't want you tainting her egg and to give it to me." I passed her my sister's egg. "She's still crying." I raised a brow.
"Well, when she can stop being a baby, we'll talk."
"I thought you were a nicer person." Payton strode off with the egg tightly in her arms. I sagged back into the bench and shook my head. I don't get it. Molly can scream and cry, but if I say anything I get all the shit aimed at me. She's a child. Yeah… she's a spoiled child. I reached into my pack and pulled out my last cigarette. I frowned, hadn't I just had nearly twenty cigarettes? I sighed and held it out to Dakheel. In the next moment my knuckles were burning. I dropped the charred excuse for a cigarette and pulled my hand to my chest biting back a yell. I looked at my hand, my knuckles were burned pretty badly. The back of my hand and half of my fingers were an angry red color. I looked at Dakheel for a long moment. I couldn't bring myself to be angry, only guilty.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been using you as a glorified lighter." I hung my head again and fought to stand up and get my things without using my injured hand. Dakheel followed along my side seemingly happy that I had learned my lesson. What an evil dog. I was about halfway down the road when I saw Payton and Molly walking into the mine. Hand throbbing viciously I turned after them.
I followed them down into the mine and moved quietly, because the echo would give me away and I am sure I'm the last person that they want to see right now. They weren't talking at all as they moved deeper into the mine. I frowned slightly unsure of why I was even doing this, but continued after them.
"You know. I don't know why he yelled at me like that." Molly muttered.
"Well, you did start it Molly."
"Why are you taking his side Payton?"
"I'm not, it's just it didn't seem fair. Why can you pitch a fit, but he can't?" I frowned, she was surprisingly mature for her age. However, I do not approve of her terminology. I did not 'pitch a fit.'
"But, it was his fault!" I heard Molly stamp her foot. They had stopped moving and I was beginning to wonder why they were even down here. As their argument continued I couldn't take it anymore and decided to stop her right there.
"How about this, we stop fighting so we can get to the root of the problem." I stepped around the corner. Molly went ridged and glared at me. "Yes, I know, you can keep on shooting the 'I hate you' glare, but it doesn't change the fact that you froze up and weren't able to give any commands." I crossed my arms and winced when my hand slid against my jacket sleeve.
"I don't need you to come and laugh at me." Molly snapped.
"There's nothing to laugh about. I'll help you train a bit with speedy pokémon and we try again tomorrow, if you won't decide I'm to blame for all of your life's problems." Molly bit her lip still not wanting to accept help. "I will also mention he won't go easy on you next time." Her eyebrows knit together and she didn't answer for a long moment.
"Fine." We spent the next hour working with piplup's bubble attack. It was effective, but very slow. Lennox was very happy to sprint circles around the penguin desperately trying to shoot him with bubbles. In that hour his bubbles began to move a bit faster and were slowly growing more accurate. It was another half hour after that when Lennox received the first bubble to his back legs. He growled and changed up his running cycle and Czar was once again at square one. Fighting to keep up with the speedy Luxio. I shifted and grimaced when my hand slid against my pant leg. "Ah! Elliot what's wrong with your hand?" Molly pointed at my hand and I held up my right hand and examined it carefully.
"I don't see anything wrong."
"Don't be stupid! Your other hand." Molly looked genuinely worried.
"That looks really serious Elliot, you should probably see a doctor." Payton was looking at my hand with a slightly disgusted look on her face. I looked at it for the first time in nearly an hour and a half and was a little surprised to see it blistering pretty badly.
"Yeah, I'll get right on that." I set down my bag and pulled out a diskette and pressed it into Molly's hands. "For that Abra of yours. Whatever her name was." She didn't yell the name after me as I left, but I didn't care. I needed a doctor.
I was at the pokémon center in a matter of minutes. The lobby was deserted which was good, because Nurse Jackie was free. I cleared my throat when I walked up to the counter. "You wouldn't happen to have a first aid kit would you?" She looked me over for a moment and I put my burned hand on the counter.
"Oh my. Come to this side of the counter." She walked over and lifted a bar allowing me to slip to the business side of the counter. She motioned over to a chair and turned on a faucet dragging my hand under the water. The cool water stung viciously and I had to fight the urge to wrench my hand away. In the bright lights of the pokémon center I could now examine it more closely. My hand was incredibly swollen. "Sit here and keep your hand under the water if you can. I need to step in the back because there's a pokémon in critical condition. So, sit tight." I nodded and made myself as comfortable as possible with the egg situated in my lap leaning against my chest. I must have dozed off, because my hand was dry next to a faucet running water and a large drool spot was on the arm of my jacket. I wiped my mouth and put my throbbing hand back under the water and looked around. A chansey was tending to the counter and healing the pokémon that weren't seriously injured with a machine not far from me. I looked at the clock, it was dinner time.
"Excuse me, Chansey? Can you get the nurse for me if she isn't busy?" She nodded and scurried through the back door. Chansey reappeared with the Nurse following behind. She looked absolutely shocked at the sight of me.
"I'm so sorry! I completely forgot you were up here! How is your hand?"
"Better. It hurts a bit."
"Can I ask what happened?"
"I was doing so some training with my houndoom and the fire got a little out of control." She shot me a look like she didn't believe it. That's my story and I am sticking to it.
"Well, I hate to say this, but it's not likely to ever stop hurting." I frowned at that.
"What are you talking about? It's just a burn."
"A houndoom owner that doesn't know?" She shook her head and my frown deepened. "When burned by a houndoom's flame the pain will never fade." I scowled darkly that's just what I needed, more complications.
"Well, that sucks." All because of one too many cigarettes.
